Long-horn-cheese cutter.



PATENTED AUG. 20, 1907.

W..L. BRIDGES.

LONG HORN CHEESE CUTTER. APPLICATION FILED MAB-.16, 1906.

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THE NORRIS Pn'sns co., wasnmaron, n. a

N. 864,119. PATENTED AUG. 20, 1907.

W. L. BRIDGES.

LONG HORN CHEESE CUTTER.

APPLICATION FILED 1513.11.15, 190a.

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PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM L. BRIDGES, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

LONG-HORN-GHEESE CUTTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1907.

Application filed March 15,1906. Serial 110-306.131.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM L. Burners, of Indianapolis, county ofMarion, and State of Indiana, have invented a certain new and usefulLongHorn-Cheese Cutter; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which like letters refer to like parts.

The object of this invention is to provide an improvement in devices forcutting long horn or other tapering cheeses or the like into portions ofuniform weight or value,'regardless of the diameter or taper of thevarious cheeses.

One important new feature is means actuated and therefore regulated bythe diameter of the cheese as it is fed intermittently to the knife forcontrolling the extent of the feeding movement at each stroke of theactuating lever so that cheeses of varying diameters will be cut intopieces of uniform weight or value. To this end adjustable means forstopping the actuating lever in its movement so as to vary the extent ofthe feeding movement is automatically regulated by the diameter of thecheese at the cutting point. Combined with the foregoing is additionalmeans for varying the position of the adjustable stop so the device willcut portions of the desired weight, or value from cheeses of varyingdiameters.

These and the other features of the invention will be understood fromthe accompanying drawings and the following description and claims.

Figure l is a perspective view of the cheese cutter. Fig. 2 is a frontelevation thereof with the knife thrown back and a changed position ofthe stop adjusting rods being shown by dotted lines. Fig. 3 is a planview of the scale plate, and its connection with the means for adjustingthe stop, a part of said plate being broken away. Fig. 4 is aperspective view of the base and part of the mechanism therein, foradjusting the stop, parts being broken away. Fig. 5 is a plan view ofthe frame of the machine showing the means for feeding the cheese andregulating the adjustable stop for limiting the stroke of the lever, thestarting position of the cheese feeding means being shown by dottedlines. Fig. 6 is the sameas' the front end of Fig. 4 with the scaleplate added and showing a different adjustment from what appears in Fig.4, parts being broken away. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the stop andmeans for mounting and changing it and some associated parts, some ofsaid parts being broken away. Fig. 8 is a vertical section through partsof the machine on the line 8-8 of Fig. 5. Fig. 9 is a detail showing theratchet feeding mechanism in side elevation, parts being broken away.Fig. 10 is the same in rear elevation, parts being in section. Fig. 11is a vertical section on line 1111 of Fig. 5. Fig. 12 is a verticalsection on line l2-12 of Fig. 11. I

The rectangular base is provided as appears in Figs. 4 and 5 with twocross bars, 21 near the front end and 22 toward the rear end. Alongitudinally extending bar 23 is provided centrally at the front end,being seciu'ed to the frame and to the middle of the cross bar 21 andhaving a longitudinal slot 24 in it. Longitudinal cheese supporting bars25 are secured to the frame, as shown in Fig. 1, one being at each sideand at right angles to the knife 26. There is a plate 27 on which thecheese drops as it is cut.

The cheese is fed longitudinally along the frame to the knife which cutsslices, diametrically of the cheese. A long horn cheese is usuallyslightly tapering. In Fig. 2 the cheese 29 is larger at its rear endthan at its front end.

The cheese is placed between two vertical rods 30 mounted in the ends ofhorizontal bars 31 pivoted at 32 to the cross bar 22. These bars aredrawn towards each other by the spring 33 so-that the rods 30 will hugthe cheese as it comes to the knife and these rods are as close to theknife as is practical. To each bar 31 there is pivoted between its endsa bar 34 extending forwardly, the two forward ends of said bars 34 beingpivoted together by the pin 35, seen in Fig. 8. This pin 35 extends intothe slot 24 of the bar 23 of the frame 20 and reciprocateslongitudinally therein. The pin is secured in a small block 36 that isfastened to the under side of a slotted stop adjusting bar 37. There isalso another slotted adjusting bar 38 above and par allel with 37. Asshown in Fig. 7 these two slotted stop adjusting bars are made out ofone piece of metal bent midway and riding loosely on the pin 139 on thepost 39 secured to the bar 21 of the frame. To accomplish this the crossbar 21 is depressed midway, as shown in Fig. 4.

The adjustable stop 40 for limiting the varying throws of the adjustinglever is a pin secured at its upper end in the block 141 and extendingthrough the two slotted bars 37 and 38 and riding upon the lower bar 37,so that said stop is longitudinally slidable along said bars 37 and 38.

The stop 40 limits the movement of the cheese-cutting rack bar 41 thatis longitudinally movable by the actuating lever 42. Said rack bar 41has a T-bar or cross bar 43 that engages the stop 40 in its variouspositions. The lever 42 is pivoted to the frame at 44 and extendsthrough a slot 45 in the frame. The end wall 46 of said slot is thestationary stop for limiting the backward throw of the lever and is thestarting point for the lever. The adjustable stop 40 limits the movementof the lever in the upper direction toward the front of the machine.

There are two stationary rack bars 47 beside the moving rack bar 41, onebeing on each side as shown in Fig. 5. The follower 48 is mountedloosely on these stationary rack bars 47 by means of a sleeve 49, asseen in Fig. 9. The pawls 50 pivoted at the rear of said follower engagethe stationary rack bars and prevent backward movement of the follower.The two pawls 50 of the stationary rack bars are connected by a rod 51so that they may be released simultaneously by the finger piece 52 onthe middle pawl 53, mounted on the follower and that engages the movingrack bar. Said finger piece 52 is not connected with the rod 51 butmerely engages and moves said red when said finger piece is actuated,thus causing the release of all three pawls 50 and 53.

When the lever 42' is moved forward it moves the middle rack bar llforward until that rack bar is stopped by the stop 40. Such forwardmovement of the rack bar 41 through the pawl 53 moves the follower andtherefore the cheese forward to the same extent as the rack bar 41. Thelever 42, when moved backward to the dotted line position shown in Fig.5, carries the rack bar back with it but not the follower, it being heldin place by the pawls 50. If it is desired to move the follower back, itis done by hand, the finger piece 52 being actuated, and that releasesall three of the pawls from the rack bars so that the follower can beslipped back to any desired place.

The adjustable stop 40 is further adjustable by means of a scale platethat is horizontally and transversely slidable through a slot in theframe of the machine, as appears in Figs. 1, 2, 5'and 11. It is providedwith a central slot 61 extending longitudinally and a guide block 62fits loosely in said slot 61 as shown in Fig. 11, said guide block beingsecured to the frame. At its inner end said bar has a transverse slot 63through which the top rib of the block 141 extends and reciprocates. Theinner end of the scale plate lies above the slotted bar 38 that is shownin Figs. 5 and 7. The scale plate is clamped in set position by theclamp 64 shown in Fig. 12 in detail, said clamp having a screw thatpasses down through the base plate 65 that is horizontally mounted onthe main base 20 as shown in Fig. 12.

On the scale plate there is a weight scale along the left hand edge withnumerals indicating pounds and fractions of pounds. There is atransverse scale 71 indicating selling prices per pound and there aregraduation lines 72 running from said two scales and intersecting toindicate where to set the scale plate to cut slices of the desiredweight or value.

In operation the cheese is placed on the device and the scale plate 60adjusted so that at a stroke of the lever 42 it will cut a slice of thedesired weight or value, say one pound or fifteen cents worth. The scalefor this purpose is set so the edge of the frame will be immediatelyover the scale plate and constitute the indicator, as seen in Fig. 1,and will register with the intersections of the lines from the weightand the price per pound numerals. This adjustment of the scale bar willmodify and regulate during the cutting of such a cheese the extent ofmovement of the actuating lever 42 so that it will cut pieces of thedesired weight or value providing the cheese is of uniform diameter; butwhen the cheese tapers, as it is fed through between the rods 30, itwill further adjust the position of the stop 40 automatically so thatthe machine will cut pieces of the desired weight or value at eachstroke of the lever, from a tapering cheese.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese or like article intoportions, a cutter, means for feeding the article to the cutter, andmeans actuated by the longitudinal surface of the article for regulatingthe extent of movement of said feeding means.

2. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese or like article intoportions, a cutter, means for intermittently feeding the article to thecutter, and means actuated by the longitudinal surface of the articlefor regulating the extent of the intermittent movements of said feedingmeans.

3. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese or like article intoportions, a cutter, means for intermittently feeding the article to thecutter, an adjustable stop for limiting the extent of the movements ofsaid feeding means, and means actuated by the longitudinal surface ofthe article for adjusting the position of said stop.

4. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like into portions,a frame adapted to receive a longitudinally extending tapering cheese, aknife operative transversely of said frame for cutting the cheese intoportions, means for intermittently moving the cheese longitudinallytoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the movement of saidactuating means, and means engaging and actuated by the sides of thecheese as it is moved toward the knife for adjusting the position ofsaid stop.

5. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like into portions,a frame adapted to receive a longitudinally extending tapering cheese, aknife operative transversely of said frame for cutting the cheese intoportions, means for intermittently moving the cheese longitudinallytoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the movement of saidactuating means, a pair of laterally movable rods extending up at thetwo sides of the cheese and in engagement therewith, and means actuatedby the lateral movement of said rods for adjusting said stop.

6. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like into portions,a frame adapted to receive a longitudinally extending tapering cheese, aknife operative transversely of said frame for cutting the cheese intoportions, means for intermittently moving the cheese longitudinallytoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the movement of saidactuating means, a pair of laterally movable rods extending up at thetwo sides of the cheese and in engagement therewith, spring controlledmeans tending to move said rods toward each other and means actuated bythe lateral movement of said rods for .adjusting said stop.

7 In a device for cutting atapering cheese and the like into portions, aframe adapted to receive a longitudinally extending tapering cheese, aknife operative transversely of said frame for cutting the cheese intoportions, means for intermittently moving the cheese longitudinallytoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the movement of saidactuating means, a pair of bars pivoted to the frame of the device atone end, a rod extending upward from the end of each bar so as to be inengagement with the sides of the cheese a spring tending to draw saidbars toward each other, and means pivotally connected with said bars andactuated thereby for adjusting the position of said stop.

8. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like into portions,a frame, a knife for severing the cheese into portions, a cheeseactuating means movable intermittently toward the knife at a right anglethereto, an adjustable stop for limiting the extent of the movements ofsaid cheese by engaging said cheese actuating means, a guide for saidstop arranged obliquely to said cheese actuating means, and a scalecontrolled plate movable at a right angle to said cheese actuating meansfor moving said stop along said guide to adapt the machine for cutting"portions of the desired weight or value from cheeses of varyingdiameters.

9. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like into portions,a frame, a knife, means for moving the cheese toward the knifeintermittently that includes a V rack bar extending to a right angle tothe knife and having on it a cross bar, an adjustable stop for engagingsaid cross bar to limit the movements of the rack bar, a guide for saidstop arranged obliquely to said rack bar, and a scale plate adjustableat a right angle to said rack bar with a slot that is parallel with theline of movement of said rack bar and into which said stop extends forloosely engaging said stop whereby said slotted portion of the scale barand said oblique guide cooperate for adjusting the stop to enable thedevice to cut portions of the desired weight or value from cheeses ofvarying diameters.

10. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like intoportions, a frame, a knife operating transversely of the frame, meansfor supporting the cheese at a right angle to the knife andlongitudinally of the frame, a rack bar extending at a right angle tothe knife, a transverse bar. on one end, means moved by said rack barfor mov-. ing the cheese toward the knife, a hand lever extendingtransversely of the frame for actuating said rack bar, a stationary stopfor limiting the movement of said lever in one direction, an adjustablestop that engages the transverse bar on the rack bar for limiting themovement of the hand lever in the other direction, a guide for saidadjustable stop that is oblique to said rack bar, and scale controlledmeans movable at a right angle to said rack bar for moving said stopalong said guide.

11. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like intoportions, a frame, a knife, means for intermittently moving said cheesetoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the intermittentmovement of said cheese actuating means, means actuated by thelongitudinal surface of the cheese as it is moved toward the knife foradjusting said stop, and a scale controlled means for ad justing saidstop. I

12. In a device for cutting a tapering cheese and the like intoportions, a frame, a knife, means for intermittently moving said cheesetoward the knife, an adjustable stop for limiting the intermittentmovement of said cheese actuating means, means actuated by thelongitudinal surface -of the cheese as it is moved toward the knife foradjusting said stop, a scale controlled means that cooperates with saidcheese controlled-means for adjusting said stop, and means for settingthe scale controlled means in one position, while fixed portions of theweight or value are being cut.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto aflixed my signature in the presenceof the witnesses herein named.

\VILLIAM L. BRIDGES.

